Mark Thompson: The List and Buy Guy Nix Tann and Associates, Inc. C 601 291 0820, O 601 982 7918 Mark@nixtann.com - SAVE MONEY ON YOUR DREAM HOME

buyer depend on this evaluation.

This procedure is meant to protect the buyer — as well as the bank that originates the loan, from purchasing an overestimated and overpriced piece of real estate. Appraisers aren’t the same as inspectors. The difference between an appraiser and an inspector is that the former will look only for obvious issues, while the latter checks, in a more detailed manner, items such as the plumbing or the air conditioning system. The appraisal report is required by the bank, and the cost is included in the mortgage cost. The appraiser evaluates the property using one of these two methods: the sales comparison approach, by comparing your home with other similar ones that were sold in the area, or the cost approach, used mainly for new buildings — a method that evaluates the cost of replacing the structure of the home.

VALUE OF PREPAYING YOUR MORTGAGE

It’s a great idea to prepay your mortgage if you can. By doing so, you can reduce the costs incurred together with interest and save thousands of dollars in the long term. Some people decide to pay a monthly sum above the mortgage payment. This amount gets applied to the principal (not the interest), and doing so consistently can save you a small fortune in the long run. Another way of reducing interest is by making 13 payments in a year instead of 12. I highly recommend that you make your prepayments in a separate check and keep track of them by putting them in a separate file folder. It works like magic, though, and I have told my students that making one extra payment a year will knock off 9 - 11 years of your term/mortgage.

This is part of shopping for a mortgage. Some mortgages have a flexible policy, which allows you to make extra payments as

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